Counter-Revolutionary War leader Shane Stevens, who was pardoned by President Ratu Wiliame Katonivere in September this year, joined the RFMF Reconciliation and Restoration service at Queen Elizabeth Barracks today.

Stevens asked for forgiveness from the families of those killed at the QEB during the 2000 riot.

Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka had said during the ceremony that he asked the President to release former Prime Minister and former RFMF Commander Voreqe Bainimarama and former Police Commissioner Sitiveni Qiliho so that they can be a part of today’s event.

It was an emotional time for the eight families and they managed to pull themselves together and forgive Stevens for what happened in 2000.

Chairman of the Grand Council of Chiefs and former Fijian military officer, Ratu Viliame Seruvakula, has called on the RFMF to remain faithful to the oaths they took when they joined the military.

Ratu Viliame, who presented the tabua, or whale tooth, on behalf of the government, Vanua and the people of Fiji, says nothing would have happened if former and ex-military personnel had stayed true to their oaths.

When we look at the activities of the RFMF at that time, it says that we forgot the oaths we took before God, which led to discord.

He adds that we should listen to the voices of men instead of listening to the God they believed in when they entered the military.

The President hopes that this program of reconciliation and restoration will be a new beginning for the RFMF.

Meanwhile, it was also an emotional day for the families of eight military personnel killed at QEB during the 2000 mutiny.

They received matanigasau (traditional request for forgiveness) from RFMF Commander Major General Ro Jone Kalouniwai.

Addressing eight families, Prime Minister Rabuka apologized to them, saying that he was the one responsible for starting the coup culture on May 14, 1987, by not complying with Fijian laws.

He says if he hadn’t done what he did in 1987, nothing like this would have happened in 2000.

Rabuka hopes that today’s service will build a new bridge and new hope for the RFMF.

A representative of the eight families urged the RFMF not to be greedy and ensure that they fulfill the oaths they took when they joined the military force.

Speaking on behalf of the RFMF, Major General Ro Jone Kalouniwai said they were here to ask for forgiveness for the events that occurred in 2000.

He says many of them have been searching for answers for the last 24 years and today the RFMF family is asking for their forgiveness.

Major General Kalouniwai says this is the beginning of a new path for them as they try to return our country to its diplomatic status.